AoA or Fort Wilderness?

[lyssabrittany]

Hi Guys,

I'm new here

My family and I are currently debating a trip to the US in December 2013, including Disney World.

We had originally booked for AoA for December 2012 but that plan fell through. Now that we are looking at going again, we have been searching out other resorts.

We are a family of 6, my parents, my sisters (20, 18, 14 at the time of the trip) and myself (22). We're pretty happy to stay in the same room and probably would prefer that - however we would still like to have our own space.

We're debating the AoA family suite or the cabins at Fort Wilderness at the moment. We like the idea of 2 bathrooms at AoA and the fact that the parents would have their own bedroom. We think we would have more space at Fort Wilderness to spread out. Also, we're more likely to convince my dad to go to Disney with the camping aspect of Fort.

The other option we were looking at is to split half and half at AoA and Fort. We would be there 8 nights so thats four at each. However, we would spend the rest of our trip between hotels so not sure if we want to do that.

SO basically, I guess I'm asking for some suggestions/ideas/comments etc.

P.S Deluxe are out, far to expensive if we want to do anything else on our trip! (We stayed at OKW in 2006 but that was with a massive discount)

 

[Tpiejg]

We have stayed at FW cabins several times and liked them. But, having only one bathroom can be a problem if you are trying to get to rope drop in the morning. there is a lot of juggling of shower time. On the other hand if you don't have the dining plan and are on a budget the full kitchen can save you some money by cooking breakfast in your room.

We are going next Aug. with 8 of us. We are staying at POR and have rented 3 rooms. It was less expensive than staying at AoA. It may be an option for you to consider. You would have 2rooms and 2bathrooms. POR is beautiful. We loved the grounds and the main building. The food court was huge and the food options were great. Enjoy planning!

 

[lovesdumbo]

I have stayed at Pop, family suites at ASMu, and cabins (and lots of other Disney resorts). I would prefer AoA. Two bathrooms, queen bed for your parents, easy access to a food court and much easier access to bus transportation to the parks.

I don't remember the cabins feeling all that much bigger.

 

[CareHeartsDisney]

The size of the cabin at FW is 504 sq. ft. AoA's suites are 565 sq. ft. Of course part of the extra square footage is the 2nd bathroom. I guess you have to decide which theme appeals more to your family. Having the extra bathroom at AoA seems like it would be a good option. Like the previous poster said, another option would be to get two connecting rooms. You'd also have 2 bathrooms and you would have 4 beds.

We just got back from AoA and stayed in a Car's Suite. We loved the suite. It was nice having all the room. Your family might enjoy having the dining and seating area along with the kitchenette in the suites or the full size kitchen that comes with the cabin.

 

[BLTtinkerbell]

I haven't stayed at AoA yet, but I have stayed in a cabin. I really liked the cabin a lot. The bedroom has a double bed and a set of bunks. The living area has a double murphy bed. We enjoyed having the full kitchen, deck and grill. It is really nice to take the boat to/from MK.

You can price out the following:
2 rooms at value
2 rooms at Swan/Dolphin
Renting DVC points

Good luck and happy planning!

 

[JennyDrake]

You can book two rooms at a value for less than an AoA family suite. _I_ would choose that option--4 beds and two bathrooms. You may wanto to rpice also 3 rooms at the values as all in your party are adult sized.

 

[lyssabrittany]

Thanks for the replies. We're still in planning stage so nothing set in concrete yet. We are just going to continue pricing our options, but in the end it will probably come down to which resort we like the look of. We hadn't really thought of the other moderates so thanks for suggesting those! Not really wanting to stay at the other values but going to keep them in mind

 

[tobikaye]

I have stayed at the cabins at FW 3 times and love them, but we were only 4 and not 6. I think with that with even one more person, we could have felt cramped in the cabins.

When trying to decide where to stay, I would include figuring out how much you will actually be at the resort. When I stayed at FW, I was with my parents and sister. The first couple of times was during summer so we knew we would have down time at the resorts due to the heat. The most current time, we knew we would need down time due to disabilities that my mom and sister developed. FW is a great place for kicking back and relaxing when you need the break.